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Dr. Takuro Uehara
College of Policy Science, Ritsumeikan University, Osaka, Japan

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0 System Dynamics
0 ecological economics
0 Social–ecological system modeling
0 Stated preference methods
0 Satoumi

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Satoumi
System Dynamics
ecological economics

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Journal article
Published: 27 July 2021 in Education Sciences
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This study explored the prioritization of English-medium instruction (EMI) teachers’ needs for faculty development and institutional support by applying a best–worst scaling approach to an EMI program in Japan. This prioritization is important as EMI programs need management under various constraints (e.g., time, budget, and teachers). This study also investigated how teachers’ needs for institutional support differ by English language competence and EMI teaching experience and their relationship with EMI programs (e.g., full-time or adjunct). Questionnaire surveys administered to 38 EMI teachers revealed that, overall, faculty development (FD) program menus training teaching styles, speaking skills, communication skills, and respecting the diversity of students should be prioritized such that it varies depending on the teachers’ English language competence levels but not their teaching experience. Irrespective of their relationship with EMI programs, the recognition and appreciation of their burdens, efforts, and contributions is most needed. There are noticeable differences based on their position over the necessity of pedagogical guidelines, teaching load, and economic incentive.

ACS Style

Takuro Uehara; Naoko Kojima. Prioritizing English-Medium Instruction Teachers’ Needs for Faculty Development and Institutional Support: A Best–Worst Scaling Approach. Education Sciences 2021, 11, 384 .

AMA Style

Takuro Uehara, Naoko Kojima. Prioritizing English-Medium Instruction Teachers’ Needs for Faculty Development and Institutional Support: A Best–Worst Scaling Approach. Education Sciences. 2021; 11 (8):384.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Takuro Uehara; Naoko Kojima. 2021. "Prioritizing English-Medium Instruction Teachers’ Needs for Faculty Development and Institutional Support: A Best–Worst Scaling Approach." Education Sciences 11, no. 8: 384.

Chapter
Published: 01 July 2021 in Towards a Post-Bertalanffy Systemics
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This chapter documents a multi-disciplinary collaboration among a mathematical economist, an ecological economist, and a systems scientist to demonstrate the contributions of system dynamics (SD) to the advancement of dynamic modeling in ecological economics. Ecological economics is a trans-disciplinary field that focuses on the complex interactions between ecological systems and economic systems. Considering these systems as a unified ecological-economic system (EES) allows for analyses that overcome the limitations of neoclassical approaches and thereby facilitate understanding of complex policy issues and failures. Modeling EESs is one of the key research areas for ecological economics. The foundation for this chapter is a model by Brander and Taylor in Am Econ Rev 88:119–138, Brander and Taylor, .American Economic Review 88:119–138, 1998) (henceforth, the BT model) that represents an EES. We discuss two extensions to the BT model that utilize economic theory in conjunction with the SD modeling approach. These extended models reveal important insights about EESs that could not have been found without SD modeling approaches.

ACS Style

Takuro Uehara; Yoko Nagase; Wayne Wakeland. System Dynamics Modeling of Ecological–Economic Systems. Towards a Post-Bertalanffy Systemics 2021, 285 -310.

AMA Style

Takuro Uehara, Yoko Nagase, Wayne Wakeland. System Dynamics Modeling of Ecological–Economic Systems. Towards a Post-Bertalanffy Systemics. 2021; ():285-310.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Takuro Uehara; Yoko Nagase; Wayne Wakeland. 2021. "System Dynamics Modeling of Ecological–Economic Systems." Towards a Post-Bertalanffy Systemics , no. : 285-310.

Journal article
Published: 13 June 2021 in Ecosystem Services
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Social-ecological system (SES) management requires targets to move in a desirable direction. However, setting targets at the outset of a management program is challenging. People representing the demand side are not always aware of the benefits of nature that are desirable. Simultaneously, managers–who represent the supply side–have limited scientific information. Therefore, we propose an adaptive SES management matrix (ASESMM) using soft targets that are temporary and hypothetical because such targets cannot be fixed at the outset. By compiling both demand- and supply-side perspectives, the ASESMM helps managers choose feasible and desirable management practices. Ecosystem services’ (ESs) classifications were adopted to capture the benefits and used as soft targets that can change over time. This ASESMM was developed by applying it to a Japanese coastal zone in consultation with the relevant stakeholders to maintain its practical value. A narrative analysis substantiated the lack of peoples’ recognition of nature’s benefits and the influence of ES information on that recognition. It also substantiated the comprehensiveness of the ESs’ classifications. Moreover, the application revealed its usefulness for realizing satoumi, a Japanese concept of social-ecological production seascapes, as it might help managers enhance synergies as well as minimize the trade-offs associated with prioritized ESs. Although it was applied to a seascape in this study, the ASESMM can be applied to any SES management site in general, including landscapes.

ACS Style

Takuro Uehara; Takeshi Hidaka; Takahiro Tsuge; Ryo Sakurai; Mateo Cordier. An adaptive social-ecological system management matrix for guiding ecosystem service improvements. Ecosystem Services 2021, 50, 101312 .

AMA Style

Takuro Uehara, Takeshi Hidaka, Takahiro Tsuge, Ryo Sakurai, Mateo Cordier. An adaptive social-ecological system management matrix for guiding ecosystem service improvements. Ecosystem Services. 2021; 50 ():101312.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Takuro Uehara; Takeshi Hidaka; Takahiro Tsuge; Ryo Sakurai; Mateo Cordier. 2021. "An adaptive social-ecological system management matrix for guiding ecosystem service improvements." Ecosystem Services 50, no. : 101312.

Journal article
Published: 04 February 2021 in Sustainability
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Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and their corresponding logos have become ubiquitous in Japan. While not legally binding, they allow us to choose how to contribute or not to the SDGs. Considering that SDGs share characteristics with nudges, we investigated whether SDGs, with their term and logos, have functioned as a nudge before and during the COVID-19 outbreak. Using Japan as a case study, we analyzed newspaper articles to explore how the term SDGs has spread before and during the outbreak. We also conducted a questionnaire among college students (n = 421) to explore how exposure to the term or its logos has steered the behavior of the younger generation toward SDGs. Our analysis revealed that the use of the term in newspaper articles has rapidly increased and spread across newspaper sections, whereas the COVID-19 outbreak has slowed its spread. The results showed that 68.9% of the respondents were familiar with the term or logos. Of these, 25.4% had changed their behavior toward SDGs. Surprisingly, COVID-19 has had a rather positive influence as a catalyst in that more respondents have overall become more proactive or maintained previous behaviors (28.3%). This indicates that COVID-19 may be an opportunity to make a shift toward a more sustainable society.

ACS Style

Takuro Uehara; Ryo Sakurai. Have Sustainable Development Goal Depictions Functioned as a Nudge for the Younger Generation before and during the COVID-19 Outbreak? Sustainability 2021, 13, 1672 .

AMA Style

Takuro Uehara, Ryo Sakurai. Have Sustainable Development Goal Depictions Functioned as a Nudge for the Younger Generation before and during the COVID-19 Outbreak? Sustainability. 2021; 13 (4):1672.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Takuro Uehara; Ryo Sakurai. 2021. "Have Sustainable Development Goal Depictions Functioned as a Nudge for the Younger Generation before and during the COVID-19 Outbreak?" Sustainability 13, no. 4: 1672.

Journal article
Published: 18 January 2021 in Ecological Economics
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Green economic growth led by technological solutions is often mentioned as a solution for mitigating plastic pollution. However, economic growth appears to be in contradiction to planetary boundaries. By developing two worldwide socio-economic models, for forecasting inadequately managed plastic waste up to the year 2050 across 217 countries and territories, we demonstrate the adverse ecological impacts of the lack of regulatory processes and educational environmental programs. We used country-by-country data from the World Bank for the model estimates. The global cumulative stock of plastic waste that is inadequately managed is predicted to increase from 61–72 million metric tons (MT) in 1990 to 5109–5678 MT by 2050. Four scenario analyses told different stories: The business-as-usual (BAU) scenario, mitigation scenario 1: Capping GDP, mitigation scenario 2: Extending education, and mitigation scenario 3: Fighting corruption. In “capping GDP,” the annual amount of inadequately managed plastic waste slightly increases and reaches 64–119 million MT/year in 2050 instead of 61–110 million MT/year in the BAU scenario. In the “extending education” scenario, the amount decreases by 34% compared to the BAU scenario in 2050. In the “fighting corruption” scenario, the amount decreases by 60%. We provide further details in the country-by-country predictions

ACS Style

Mateo Cordier; Takuro Uehara; Juan Baztan; Bethany Jorgensen; Huijie Yan. Plastic pollution and economic growth: The influence of corruption and lack of education. Ecological Economics 2021, 182, 106930 .

AMA Style

Mateo Cordier, Takuro Uehara, Juan Baztan, Bethany Jorgensen, Huijie Yan. Plastic pollution and economic growth: The influence of corruption and lack of education. Ecological Economics. 2021; 182 ():106930.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Mateo Cordier; Takuro Uehara; Juan Baztan; Bethany Jorgensen; Huijie Yan. 2021. "Plastic pollution and economic growth: The influence of corruption and lack of education." Ecological Economics 182, no. : 106930.

Preprint
Published: 31 May 2020
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This study developed a system dynamics model to understand the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Japan. The model is built on the generic SEIR (Susceptible, Exposed, Infected, and Recovered) framework adopted by Ghaffarzadegan and Rahmandad (2020) to build a system dynamics model for the spread of COVID-19 in Iran. Japan seems to be successful in containing the spread compared with other countries, and its first peak has passed. However, because this also leaves a large population still susceptible to the virus, it could cause a second and potentially higher peak of infection after the state of emergency aimed at reducing contact rate is lifted. As the government has proposed the “New Lifestyle,” it is critical to behave cautiously so as not to be infected. While the model focuses on the SEIR structure, the reflection of other sub-structures such as economy and hospital capacity that have tradeoffs with reducing contact rate should be beneficial. However, before extending the model, it is also critical to conduct estimates using confidence intervals rather than point estimates to better reflect uncertainties.

ACS Style

Takuro Uehara. Understanding the Spread of COVID-19 in Japan: Preliminary Results from a System Dynamics Model. 2020, 1 .

AMA Style

Takuro Uehara. Understanding the Spread of COVID-19 in Japan: Preliminary Results from a System Dynamics Model. . 2020; ():1.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Takuro Uehara. 2020. "Understanding the Spread of COVID-19 in Japan: Preliminary Results from a System Dynamics Model." , no. : 1.

Communication
Published: 25 March 2020 in Sustainability
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This study reports preliminary survey results exploring whether children can recognize marine plastic waste as a systemic issue, especially regarding stock–flow relationships and delays. A systemic understanding of this issue is key to reducing marine plastic waste and to avoid its irreversible effects. Reducing the inflow of waste does not necessarily reduce the waste accumulated in the ocean, unless its rate becomes smaller than the outflow (e.g., cleanup). Delays due to a wait-and-see policy will result in irreversible effects, such as animals swallowing plastic waste, and plastic waste becoming microplastics that are difficult to clean up. A questionnaire survey was conducted during workshops and poster sessions at an event for sustainability in Japan. Participants were children from fourth grade to high school (9–18 years old). Participants were shown to have a limited systematic understanding of marine plastic waste. The majority incorrectly adopted pattern matching (70.6%) and failed to draw correct inflow and outflow curves (94.1%). The majority (83.6%) did not point out delay issues. This study indicates a need to correct mental models to understand the issue by introducing system education.

ACS Style

Takuro Uehara. Can Young Generations Recognize Marine Plastic Waste as a Systemic Issue? Sustainability 2020, 12, 2586 .

AMA Style

Takuro Uehara. Can Young Generations Recognize Marine Plastic Waste as a Systemic Issue? Sustainability. 2020; 12 (7):2586.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Takuro Uehara. 2020. "Can Young Generations Recognize Marine Plastic Waste as a Systemic Issue?" Sustainability 12, no. 7: 2586.

Perspective
Published: 10 September 2019 in People and Nature
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In addition to the management of marine protected areas, the management of non‐protected areas is integral to sustainable use and conservation of coastal zones. The human–nature connection has drawn increasing attention in the Western society because the disconnect from nature is a root cause of ecological crises and unsustainability. Re‐connecting is a promising avenue. We propose satoumi creation as an approach for the sustainable use and conservation of coastal zones by re‐connecting people to nature. Satoumi is a Japanese term describing a desirable state of coastal zones with enhanced biodiversity and productivity realized by active human intervention. Although satoumi is promising, previous discussions have been narrowly focused on ecosystems. We reconsidered satoumi from a social‐ecological system (SES) perspective to elucidate the full spectrum of its key features. The human–nature connection is an integral part of satoumi. Satoumi engenders relational values in addition to instrumental and intrinsic values. Satoumi as a state is one thing and its creation another. We cannot merely transplant a successful satoumi to other locations. Furthermore, because coastal SESs are complex, systemic transformation into satoumi requires identifying deep leverage points. We propose a certain marine education at schools that could function as a deep leverage point. The education corresponds to the three realms of deep leverage for sustainability transformation: re‐structure, re‐connect and re‐think. A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article.

ACS Style

Takuro Uehara; Takeshi Hidaka; Osamu Matsuda; Ryo Sakurai; Tetsuo Yanagi; Taisuke Yoshioka. Satoumi: Re‐connecting people to nature for sustainable use and conservation of coastal zones. People and Nature 2019, 1, 435 -441.

AMA Style

Takuro Uehara, Takeshi Hidaka, Osamu Matsuda, Ryo Sakurai, Tetsuo Yanagi, Taisuke Yoshioka. Satoumi: Re‐connecting people to nature for sustainable use and conservation of coastal zones. People and Nature. 2019; 1 (4):435-441.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Takuro Uehara; Takeshi Hidaka; Osamu Matsuda; Ryo Sakurai; Tetsuo Yanagi; Taisuke Yoshioka. 2019. "Satoumi: Re‐connecting people to nature for sustainable use and conservation of coastal zones." People and Nature 1, no. 4: 435-441.

Journal article
Published: 24 August 2019 in Sustainability
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Sustainability assessments of marine protected areas (MPAs) are essential for improving the effectiveness of management efforts. Since sustainability is closely related to the concept of intergenerational well-being, measuring and tracking it through time is crucial. Therefore, this study will use the system dynamics approach applied at Pieh marine park as the study site. A system dynamics model was built comprising four sub-models: fish population dynamics, coral reef coverage, tourism, and pollution. The goodness-of-fit test of the model indicated low and unsystematic model error. The sustainability assessment was conducted using the three principles of sustainability proposed by Herman Daly, which define sustainability for resource management based on the change in the amount of renewable resources, non-renewable resources, and pollution. The sustainability assessment determined that Pieh marine park cannot sustain economic activities in its area, indicated by decreasing renewable resource indicators in the form of fish population dynamics, coral reef coverage, and increasing pollution levels. Several management interventions can be applied to improve sustainability, including lowering the total allowable catch, coral transplantation, and improved waste management.

ACS Style

Supradianto Nugroho; Takuro Uehara; Yori Herwangi. Interpreting Daly’s Sustainability Criteria for Assessing the Sustainability of Marine Protected Areas: A System Dynamics Approach. Sustainability 2019, 11, 4609 .

AMA Style

Supradianto Nugroho, Takuro Uehara, Yori Herwangi. Interpreting Daly’s Sustainability Criteria for Assessing the Sustainability of Marine Protected Areas: A System Dynamics Approach. Sustainability. 2019; 11 (17):4609.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Supradianto Nugroho; Takuro Uehara; Yori Herwangi. 2019. "Interpreting Daly’s Sustainability Criteria for Assessing the Sustainability of Marine Protected Areas: A System Dynamics Approach." Sustainability 11, no. 17: 4609.

Preprint content
Published: 03 August 2019
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A study by Barnes (2019) concluded that there exists an empirical environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) relationship between mismanaged plastic waste per capita and income per capita. However, this result needs careful interpretation. The study adopted data that used the World Bank database to compute mismanaged plastic waste amounts. Because data to compute them were not available for all countries, missing data were estimated by relating them to economic classification (i.e., income level). In other words, the data used for the analysis by Barnes simply assumed—without scientific validation—that mismanaged plastic waste amounts are related to economic classification (i.e., income level).

ACS Style

Takuro Uehara; Mateo Cordier. Is there an empirical environmental Kuznets curve relationship between mismanaged plastic waste per capita and income per capita? A caveat. 2019, 1 .

AMA Style

Takuro Uehara, Mateo Cordier. Is there an empirical environmental Kuznets curve relationship between mismanaged plastic waste per capita and income per capita? A caveat. . 2019; ():1.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Takuro Uehara; Mateo Cordier. 2019. "Is there an empirical environmental Kuznets curve relationship between mismanaged plastic waste per capita and income per capita? A caveat." , no. : 1.

Preprint
Published: 03 August 2019
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A study by Barnes (2019) concluded that there exists an empirical environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) relationship between mismanaged plastic waste per capita and income per capita. However, this result needs careful interpretation. The study adopted data that used the World Bank database to compute mismanaged plastic waste amounts. Because data to compute them were not available for all countries, missing data were estimated by relating them to economic classification (i.e., income level). In other words, the data used for the analysis by Barnes simply assumed—without scientific validation—that mismanaged plastic waste amounts are related to economic classification (i.e., income level).

ACS Style

Takuro Uehara; Mateo Cordier. Is there an empirical environmental Kuznets curve relationship between mismanaged plastic waste per capita and income per capita? A caveat. 2019, 1 .

AMA Style

Takuro Uehara, Mateo Cordier. Is there an empirical environmental Kuznets curve relationship between mismanaged plastic waste per capita and income per capita? A caveat. . 2019; ():1.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Takuro Uehara; Mateo Cordier. 2019. "Is there an empirical environmental Kuznets curve relationship between mismanaged plastic waste per capita and income per capita? A caveat." , no. : 1.

Journal article
Published: 01 January 2019 in Ecology and Society
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ACS Style

Takuro Uehara; Takahiro Tsuge; Ayumi Onuma. Applying three distinct metrics to measure people’s perceptions of resilience. Ecology and Society 2019, 24, 1 .

AMA Style

Takuro Uehara, Takahiro Tsuge, Ayumi Onuma. Applying three distinct metrics to measure people’s perceptions of resilience. Ecology and Society. 2019; 24 (2):1.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Takuro Uehara; Takahiro Tsuge; Ayumi Onuma. 2019. "Applying three distinct metrics to measure people’s perceptions of resilience." Ecology and Society 24, no. 2: 1.

Preprint content
Published: 20 November 2018
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Plastics have become increasingly dominant in the consumer marketplace since their commercial development in the 1930s and 1940s. Global plastic production reached 335 million tons in 2016, a 640% increase since 1975. In 1960, plastics made up less than 1% of municipal solid waste by mass in the United States. By 2000, this proportion increased by one order of magnitude. As a result, plastic contamination is found everywhere in the world’s oceans, coastal areas, freshwater bodies and terrestrial environments. Plastics in the marine environment are of increasing concern because of their persistence and effects on the oceans, wildlife, and, potentially, humans. A report by the MacArthur Foundation published in 2016 claimed that innovation can solve the plastic problem. However, it does not say how much innovation is needed and does not analyse if it is feasible. In this working paper, we propose to bring about answers to this question by developing an ecological-economic world model that simulates plastic waste emission by human activities, transport from land to the ocean and accumulation into the marine ecosystem. Innovations will be simulated in an economic sub-model integrated to the ecological-economic world model as one of its components. The model, in its current development stage, is capable of quantifying the impacts of innovations on the total amount of plastics accumulated in the ocean at the world scale. The ecological-economic world model is designed in Powersim following system dynamics programming. In a further work, the economic sub-model will be designed in Excel Following input-output matrix equations. Our preliminary results suggest that to reach a significant abatement of plastic in the global ocean, a panel of diverse types of solutions is required. One type of environmental measure alone will not succeed. Upstream and downstream solutions must be combined: (i) across the social-ecological system, that is, “at-the-source” but also “middle” and “end-of-pipe” solutions; (ii) as well as across the plastic contamination causal chain as well, that is, “preventive” but also “curative” solutions. Only combined solutions succeed to reduce the amount of plastic stock accumulated in the oceans since the 1950’s to the level of 2010. Our model suggests that solutions which would be able to go further and reduce plastic stocks to 50% of 2010’s level would require intense ocean cleanup. To achieve such an ambitious environmental target, 11.89% of total plastic wastes should be removed from the ocean every year between 2020 and 2030. The technical feasibility of such a solution is highly questionable knowing that current technologies remove only floating plastic at the surface of the water and that such floating plastic represent a very small percentage of all plastics accumulated in the global ocean at the surface of the water, in the water column and deposited on the seabed.

ACS Style

Mateo Cordier; Takuro Uehara. Will innovation solve the global plastic contamination: how much innovation is needed for that? 2018, 1 .

AMA Style

Mateo Cordier, Takuro Uehara. Will innovation solve the global plastic contamination: how much innovation is needed for that? . 2018; ():1.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Mateo Cordier; Takuro Uehara. 2018. "Will innovation solve the global plastic contamination: how much innovation is needed for that?" , no. : 1.

Preprint
Published: 20 November 2018
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Plastics have become increasingly dominant in the consumer marketplace since their commercial development in the 1930s and 1940s. Global plastic production reached 335 million tons in 2016, a 640% increase since 1975. In 1960, plastics made up less than 1% of municipal solid waste by mass in the United States. By 2000, this proportion increased by one order of magnitude. As a result, plastic contamination is found everywhere in the world’s oceans, coastal areas, freshwater bodies and terrestrial environments. Plastics in the marine environment are of increasing concern because of their persistence and effects on the oceans, wildlife, and, potentially, humans. A report by the MacArthur Foundation published in 2016 claimed that innovation can solve the plastic problem. However, it does not say how much innovation is needed and does not analyse if it is feasible. In this working paper, we propose to bring about answers to this question by developing an ecological-economic world model that simulates plastic waste emission by human activities, transport from land to the ocean and accumulation into the marine ecosystem. Innovations will be simulated in an economic sub-model integrated to the ecological-economic world model as one of its components. The model, in its current development stage, is capable of quantifying the impacts of innovations on the total amount of plastics accumulated in the ocean at the world scale. The ecological-economic world model is designed in Powersim following system dynamics programming. In a further work, the economic sub-model will be designed in Excel Following input-output matrix equations. Our preliminary results suggest that to reach a significant abatement of plastic in the global ocean, a panel of diverse types of solutions is required. One type of environmental measure alone will not succeed. Upstream and downstream solutions must be combined: (i) across the social-ecological system, that is, “at-the-source” but also “middle” and “end-of-pipe” solutions; (ii) as well as across the plastic contamination causal chain as well, that is, “preventive” but also “curative” solutions. Only combined solutions succeed to reduce the amount of plastic stock accumulated in the oceans since the 1950’s to the level of 2010. Our model suggests that solutions which would be able to go further and reduce plastic stocks to 50% of 2010’s level would require intense ocean cleanup. To achieve such an ambitious environmental target, 11.89% of total plastic wastes should be removed from the ocean every year between 2020 and 2030. The technical feasibility of such a solution is highly questionable knowing that current technologies remove only floating plastic at the surface of the water and that such floating plastic represent a very small percentage of all plastics accumulated in the global ocean at the surface of the water, in the water column and deposited on the seabed.

ACS Style

Mateo Cordier; Takuro Uehara. Will innovation solve the global plastic contamination: how much innovation is needed for that? 2018, 1 .

AMA Style

Mateo Cordier, Takuro Uehara. Will innovation solve the global plastic contamination: how much innovation is needed for that? . 2018; ():1.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Mateo Cordier; Takuro Uehara. 2018. "Will innovation solve the global plastic contamination: how much innovation is needed for that?" , no. : 1.

Preprint
Published: 27 September 2018
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Sustainability indicators are an important management tool used to realize and sustain the desired state of coastal zones. They simplify, quantify, analyze, and communicate the complexity of coastal zones. However, because of such simplification, indicator selection needs to consider two primary issues, namely, the causal relationships between indicators and other components of the coastal zones as a complex social-ecological system, and the contribution of the selected indicators to management goals (e.g., sustainable coastal zones). Since the root cause of these issues is the “systemness” of coastal zones, which is difficult to capture with indicators, this study applied Causal Loop Diagrams (CLD) as a type of systems approach as a solution; As a case study, the sustainability indicators set in the action plan for Omura Bay, Western Japan, were translated into a CLD. The plan was aimed at realizing and sustaining “Satoumi,” a Japanese concept of desirable socio-ecological production landscapes. This study showed that the CLD 1) helped indicator selection by assessing current indicators and identifying those missing with regards to their contributions to Satoumi, and 2) identified research priorities to verify hypothetical relationships that lack hard data.

ACS Style

Takuro Uehara; Takeshi Hidaka. Study of the contribution of sustainability indicators to the development of sustainable coastal zones - a systems approach. 2018, 1 .

AMA Style

Takuro Uehara, Takeshi Hidaka. Study of the contribution of sustainability indicators to the development of sustainable coastal zones - a systems approach. . 2018; ():1.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Takuro Uehara; Takeshi Hidaka. 2018. "Study of the contribution of sustainability indicators to the development of sustainable coastal zones - a systems approach." , no. : 1.

Journal article
Published: 29 August 2018 in Sustainability
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The purpose of this study was to explore the feasibility of installing Water bottle Refill Stations (WRSs) and their contributions to campus sustainability by means of encouraging pro-environmental behavior in students. Plastic waste is one of the most critical environmental issues. Therefore, we investigated how WRS can deter students from using disposable plastic bottles. We conducted a survey at a Japanese university to address (1) students’ Willingness To Pay (WTP) to install WRS, (2) their Willingness To Use (WTU) WRSs while acknowledging its environmental benefits, and (3) the impact of communicating information about points (1) and (2). We utilized Goal-Framing Theory (GFT) and the Integrated Framework for Encouraging Pro-Environmental Behavior (IFEP) as the theoretical background of our study. The results of our survey found that the mean WTP was 2211 JPY (1 JPY = 0.01 USD), an amount students would donate just once. This finding indicates students would be willing to pay to install a WRS at their university. The mean WTP students supported would be enough to cover the WRS installation and maintenance costs. According to our study, 58.82% of students stated that they would be willing to use WRS. In doing so, students would save 45,191 disposable plastic bottles and reduce 10,846 kg of related CO2 emissions every year. Our study also showed a statistically significant increase in WTP and WTU WRS as we introduced more and more information about pro-environmental behaviors to students. This finding indicates the importance of information campaigning and learning how to encourage pro-environmental behavior.

ACS Style

Takuro Uehara; Alayna Ynacay-Nye. How Water Bottle Refill Stations Contribute to Campus Sustainability: A Case Study in Japan. Sustainability 2018, 10, 3074 .

AMA Style

Takuro Uehara, Alayna Ynacay-Nye. How Water Bottle Refill Stations Contribute to Campus Sustainability: A Case Study in Japan. Sustainability. 2018; 10 (9):3074.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Takuro Uehara; Alayna Ynacay-Nye. 2018. "How Water Bottle Refill Stations Contribute to Campus Sustainability: A Case Study in Japan." Sustainability 10, no. 9: 3074.

Journal article
Published: 24 July 2018 in PeerJ
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BackgroundThe long-term evolution of preferences for nature is crucial to conservation projects, given their targeted long-term horizons. Neglecting to account for this evolution could lead to undesirable human–nature relationships. This study compares the willingness to pay (WTP) for three coastal conservation projects in the Seto Inland Sea, Japan, at two distant time points (1998 and 2015), and tests for temporal transferability. It also compares protest responses that are often overlooked in WTP practices, regardless of their utility for conservation projects.MethodsGiven the lack of a unanimous protocol for protest response analyses and their use in estimating WTP, we propose a comprehensive analytic framework that integrates the two.ResultsWe show that, while preferences for coastal ecosystem services were overall stable and temporarily transferable, the preferences for certain aspects of conservation projects considerably changed.DiscussionThis suggests the need to reconsider the projects’ scheme, not the ecosystem services themselves, along with the clarification of beneficiaries and those responsible for past destruction. We conclude by suggesting further studies with a focus on regions experiencing significant social-ecological changes, such as developing countries, by exploiting the rich asset of existing valuations. This could contribute to the database for more temporal-sensitive ecosystem service valuations utilized for benefit transfers.

ACS Style

Takuro Uehara; Takahiro Tsuge; Takahiro Ota. Long-term evolution of preferences for conservation projects in the Seto Inland Sea, Japan: a comprehensive analytic framework. PeerJ 2018, 6, e5366 .

AMA Style

Takuro Uehara, Takahiro Tsuge, Takahiro Ota. Long-term evolution of preferences for conservation projects in the Seto Inland Sea, Japan: a comprehensive analytic framework. PeerJ. 2018; 6 ():e5366.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Takuro Uehara; Takahiro Tsuge; Takahiro Ota. 2018. "Long-term evolution of preferences for conservation projects in the Seto Inland Sea, Japan: a comprehensive analytic framework." PeerJ 6, no. : e5366.

Case study
Published: 23 July 2018 in Environment, Development and Sustainability
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Sound management of social-ecological systems should reflect diverse values; otherwise, the systems may inadvertently lead to neither fair nor desirable states. Relational values are one of three primary value domains of these diverse values. Since they may strongly motivate care for nature, nurturing these values could be a useful management measure for people involved in management (e.g., policy makers and nonprofit organizations) to realize a desirable state of social-ecological systems. To test this hypothesis, we studied ocean literacy programs at a district junior high school in Hinase District, Okayama, Japan. The district is known as a Satoumi (Japanese coastal socio-ecological production landscape). First, we measured the significance of relational values in the district. Second, we assessed the effect of the ocean literacy programs on cultivating relational values. Third, to test the feasibility of the ocean literacy programs as management measures to cultivate relational values, we used a contingent valuation method, developed in environmental economics, to measure residents’ willingness to support the programs. Our study reveals that relational values are a critical component of Satoumi. Students are promising supporters of Satoumi given the declining and aging population of guardians, a result of the decline in revenues from fishery; moreover, the programs cultivate relational values in students. Residents support the ocean literacy programs, and their willingness to pay for them is connected with relational values. Therefore, ocean literacy can be an effective and feasible management measure for sustaining Satoumi through cultivation of relational values.

ACS Style

Takuro Uehara; Ryo Sakurai; Takahiro Tsuge. Cultivating relational values and sustaining socio-ecological production landscapes through ocean literacy: a study on Satoumi. Environment, Development and Sustainability 2018, 22, 1599 -1616.

AMA Style

Takuro Uehara, Ryo Sakurai, Takahiro Tsuge. Cultivating relational values and sustaining socio-ecological production landscapes through ocean literacy: a study on Satoumi. Environment, Development and Sustainability. 2018; 22 (2):1599-1616.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Takuro Uehara; Ryo Sakurai; Takahiro Tsuge. 2018. "Cultivating relational values and sustaining socio-ecological production landscapes through ocean literacy: a study on Satoumi." Environment, Development and Sustainability 22, no. 2: 1599-1616.

Journal article
Published: 29 May 2018 in Sustainability
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The complexity of ecological-economic systems significantly reduces our ability to investigate their behavior and propose policies aimed at various environmental and/or economic objectives. Following recent suggestions for integrating nonlinear dynamic modeling with input-output (IO) modeling, we develop a fully dynamic ecological-economic model by integrating IO with system dynamics (SD) for better capturing critical attributes of ecological-economic systems. We also develop and evaluate various scenarios using policy impact and policy sensitivity analyses. The model and analysis are applied to the degradation of fish nursery habitats by industrial harbors in the Seine estuary (Haute-Normandie region, France). The modeling technique, dynamization, and scenarios allow us to show trade-offs between economic and ecological outcomes and evaluate the impacts of restoration scenarios and water quality improvement on the fish population.

ACS Style

Takuro Uehara; Mateo Cordier; Bertrand Hamaide. Fully Dynamic Input-Output/System Dynamics Modeling for Ecological-Economic System Analysis. Sustainability 2018, 10, 1765 .

AMA Style

Takuro Uehara, Mateo Cordier, Bertrand Hamaide. Fully Dynamic Input-Output/System Dynamics Modeling for Ecological-Economic System Analysis. Sustainability. 2018; 10 (6):1765.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Takuro Uehara; Mateo Cordier; Bertrand Hamaide. 2018. "Fully Dynamic Input-Output/System Dynamics Modeling for Ecological-Economic System Analysis." Sustainability 10, no. 6: 1765.

Preprint
Published: 07 May 2018
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The long-term evolution of preferences for nature is crucial to conservation projects given their targeted long-term horizons. Neglecting to account for this evolution could lead to undesirable human−nature relationships. This study compares the willingness to pay (WTP) for three coastal conservation projects in the Seto Inland Sea, Japan, at two distant time points (1998 and 2015) and tests for temporal transferability. It also compares protest responses that are often overlooked in WTP practices, regardless of their utility for conservation projects. Given the lack of a unanimous protocol for protest response analyses and their use in estimating WTP, we propose a comprehensive analytic framework that integrates the two. We show that while preferences for coastal ecosystem services were overall stable and temporarily transferable, the preferences for certain aspects of conservation projects considerably changed. This suggests the need to reconsider the projects’ scheme, not the ecosystem services themselves, along with the clarification of beneficiaries and those responsible for past destruction. We conclude by suggesting further studies with focus on regions experiencing significant social-ecological changes, such as developing countries, by exploiting the rich asset of existing valuations. This could contribute to the database for more temporal-sensitive ecosystem service valuations utilized for benefit transfers.

ACS Style

Takuro Uehara; Takahiro Tsuge; Takahiro Ota. Long-term evolution of preferences for conservation projects in Seto Inland Sea, Japan: A comprehensive analytic framework. 2018, 1 .

AMA Style

Takuro Uehara, Takahiro Tsuge, Takahiro Ota. Long-term evolution of preferences for conservation projects in Seto Inland Sea, Japan: A comprehensive analytic framework. . 2018; ():1.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Takuro Uehara; Takahiro Tsuge; Takahiro Ota. 2018. "Long-term evolution of preferences for conservation projects in Seto Inland Sea, Japan: A comprehensive analytic framework." , no. : 1.